The ups and downs of e-shopping<\/p>\n
By Devi M. Asmarani<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): For a long time, I was one of those purists who
\nthought shopping on the Internet was a redundant concept welcomed
\nonly by technology freaks, people with excessively low self-
\nesteem or the unabomber.<\/p>\n
That was beside the fact that I have owned an email account
\nand regularly chatted on the Internet since the teenage days of
\nthe www, or the world-wide-wait as it was reputed then, when
\nhaving a modem was a mere luxury and not a necessity.<\/p>\n
But early last year, I took a leisurely \"tour\" on the Internet
\nand came upon the giant and legendary Amazon.com. After keying in
\nthe field I took interest in I was proposed with several really
\ninteresting books.<\/p>\n
I read the books' descriptions and the readers' reviews and
\nsuddenly it became clear to me: with Amazon here, there was no
\nneed to visit a Barnes and Noble (which are not anywhere in this
\ncountry) or any other book superstore to buy these books.<\/p>\n
Without realizing, I had succumbed to the expanding web of e-
\ncommerce, the world I used to sneer at with cynicism.<\/p>\n
Before, giving a credit card number to a computer-generated
\ncashier over the Internet seemed as foolish as flashing the Rp
\n50,000 bills in your wallet in the thick of Tanah Abang market.
\nNow the act seemed inevitable to me, like having to switch from a
\nVCR to Laser Disc, then to VCD, then, if you can afford it, a
\nDVD.<\/p>\n
The temptation was hard to resist, and I typed in my credit
\ncard number. One of the two books I requested was out of print.
\nAmazon said it would email me if it came upon a copy of the book,
\nnew or used.<\/p>\n
All the necessary ordering procedures done, I closed the
\nsession and from then on constantly wondered whether the book
\nwould actually get into my hands some time before the century
\nends, or whether it would be lost in the abyss of Indonesia's
\nmailing service.<\/p>\n
What a nice surprise when over a week later I found a package
\nbearing Amazon.com on my desk. In addition to the book, there was
\na bookmark and a post-it note.<\/p>\n
This is a success story, though not nearly as successful as
\nJeff Bezo's, the billionaire behind the largest online store.<\/p>\n
Since then Amazon has become an integral part of my life,
\nalthough I still limit my online shopping to books and other non-
\napparel products. Until seven months later.<\/p>\n
In anticipation of an outdoor trip, I came to the conclusion
\nthat the majority of people in Jakarta are nature-shy. An outdoor
\nstore selling rugged and reasonably priced products is hard to
\ncome by. Finding a good pair of hiking boots in a woman's size is
\nan even harder task than finding durians during the off-season.<\/p>\n
So one day, with my trip companion, I decided to window shop
\nthe net. Amazon had recently notified me about a book I ordered
\nover half a year before. This time, my morale and my faith in e-
\ncommerce was up.<\/p>\n
OK, why not, let's go radical and shop for clothing over the
\nInternet.<\/p>\n
First we need a good hiking pack, so we visited
\nwww.mountainsmith.com. There were all these wonderful things, but
\none thing was wrong: Mountainsmith does not take online orders.
\nInstead, it links visitors to etailers, two of which are
\nwww.altrec.com and www.rei.com.<\/p>\n
Both Altrec and Rei are actually brick-and-mortar retailers of
\noutdoor goods. We found the two stores similar. They provide the
\nbasic needs for e-shoppers: pictures (including enlarged
\nversions) and descriptions. Nothing fancy, no rotating viewing,
\nno zooming, no try-on mannequins, just basic information.<\/p>\n
We bagged our stuff at Altrec and proceeded to the check-out
\ncounter. But we encountered a problem when we were typing in the
\nshipping address: Indonesia was not on the list of countries they
\ndeliver to.<\/p>\n
What was happening here? I thought now that the East Timor
\nhavoc was over, there would be no such thing as an embargo.
\nLuckily, the live online help was on (8 am to 6 pm PST). His name
\nwas Mark. Mark and I exchanged a few words using instant message
\ntechnology. He told me that I would have to get my purchases
\ndelivered to an address in one of the countries listed.<\/p>\n
I picked Singapore, where a friend resides. In three days she
\ncalled to let me know that a huge UPS package had arrived at her
\nfront door. \"Super Technology savvy!\" she praised.<\/p>\n
But Altrec did not have some of the items we wanted. I tried
\nRei, which seemed to have a better selection. Rei seemed a
\npleasant store at the time at least, (except it did not accept
\nAmex, my friend complained) and because Indonesia was among the
\ncountries it says it delivers to.<\/p>\n
So we made the purchase, and began the waiting period. One
\nweek, then two weeks went by. I got impatient and emailed them.
\nNo answer. Finally I resorted to the 1-800 numbers, which it
\nturned out, were not toll-free outside the United States. The
\noperator said my credit card did not go through but offered to
\nplace another order with a different card.<\/p>\n
I delivered a lengthy lecture to the phone operator about how
\nimportant it is for them to let the customers know if an order
\ngoes through or not so that they can immediately use another
\ncard.<\/p>\n
One week, two weeks. No package, not a byte of electronic
\ninformation. Finally, I dialed the number again, and went through
\nthe same speech of how unprofessional it is to leave an anxious
\ne-customer in cold about his or her order.<\/p>\n
After a while, I was transferred to an international customer
\nrelations operator, who told me that Rei actually no longer
\ndelivers to Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"That can't be,\" I said. \"Your website says it can.\"<\/p>\n
\"Yes ma'am, but apparently we no longer can because most of
\nour packages to Indonesia either get lost or are imposed with
\nsuch high duties that customers reject them,\" she said.<\/p>\n
So I learned one bitter lesson in e-shopping: delivery systems
\nare as important as the payment system, sometimes more. Indonesia
\nis neither Kosovo nor Myanmar, but apparently our shipping
\ninfrastructure and our taxing system was too much for some
\netailers to handle.<\/p>\n
After this experience -- I ended up going to a Nike's (brick
\nand mortar) store for hiking shoes -- I gathered up several main
\npoints about shopping at e-stores:<\/p>\n
1. Not all etailers are created the same. Like anything in the
\nworld, they have their own pluses and minuses: large selection
\nbut they deliver only in the United States, sophisticated
\ntechnology but not user-friendly (street clothing etailer
\nmissboo.com has a \"dressing room\" complete with mannequin and
\n360-degree rotating view, but it is very slow. Plus it does not
\ndeliver to Indonesia).<\/p>\n
2. You have to have a credit card, and the right one too. If e-
\ncommerce is the way the future of the world is going, then I'm
\nafraid there will be little room for people with bad credit.<\/p>\n
3. Electronic communication is not the final means. That is what
\nthose 1-800 numbers are for. And remember, they are not toll-free
\nfrom here.<\/p>\n
4. And, of course, if all this is still a bit iffy to you, you
\ncan always resort to mail ordering or plain old get the cash at
\nthe ATM and head to the mall.<\/p>",
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